Immediate transformation is always a tall order with a rookie quarterback under center. Instead of placing DeShone Kizer into a veteran-heavy attack, the second-round passer is missing his lead receiver in Corey Coleman and playing with one of the youngest rosters league-wide, a dynamic that led to a whopping eight drops on Sunday.

"I wish I could explain the drops," Jackson said. "The [offensive] pass interferences, I need to go back and watch that. We run the same crossing routes as everybody else."

Under duress for much of the game, Kizer was a mixture of ups and downs, generating a pair of fourth-quarter touchdown drives, but also throwing two killer third-quarter interceptions. He wasn't helped by a secondary that had no idea how to stop Colts star pass-catcher T.Y. Hilton.

"Nothing magical is going to happen," Jackson told reporters. "We have to get better."

This was a game these young Browns hoped to use as a showcase for their developing players, a tilt many felt they could -- and should -- win as proof of the greater plan in Cleveland. Instead, it raises the pressure on a front office and coaching staff that sits at 1-18 over the past two seasons.

With home games up next against the winless Bengals and Jets (1-2), Cleveland is on the hook to turn things around as the schedule from there morphs into a beast.

"Nobody's down, nobody's throwing in the towel," Jackson said. "If anything, I'm [teed] off ... We have to make the plays ... That's what pro teams do, and we have to get better at it."